Chen was the first to come to her senses. When she saw that it was Wang Laizi who had come to deliver the message, she didn't care about her sordid relationship with Wang Pozi and immediately rushed out of the Li family's courtyard.
"What did you say? They're back? And they brought back wild goats?"
Wang Laizi had volunteered to run back early to report the news because he didn't want to carry the prey. Now, after a long journey, he was hot and thirsty, and he became very impatient when he heard Chen's words. "What else do you want? We brought back nearly fifty wild goats and a tiger this time!"
He ignored Chen, looked up and saw his wife in front of the crowd, and shouted, "What are you doing here? Hurry up and go home and get me some water!"
Someone immediately told him that because they hadn't returned for three days, Granny Wang had brought people to cause trouble.
Wang Laizi immediately flew into a rage, rushed forward, and started beating Wang Pozi mercilessly. "I'm working myself to the bone outside, and you're just dragging me down in the village? The village chief said up in the mountains that this time, families who perform well will get a whole sheep! With you causing this mess, what will our family get?"
He was so angry!
These past few days in the mountains, there's been hardly any food, and water is so scarce it's barely enough to keep you from dying of thirst. He finally managed to hunt so many animals and was hoping to get a sheep so he could eat meat for at least the next two months. But his wife is such a disappointment; she actually dared to bring people to the village chief's house to cause trouble!
Old Mrs. Wang was stunned by the beating. After regaining her senses, she burst into tears, wailing, "Heavens above! Whom am I doing this for? You yourself said that after returning from the mountain, our family would flee the famine. You haven't come back for three days, and I was worried. Couldn't I at least ask them for an explanation? This is outrageous! I don't want to live anymore..."
While she was saying she didn't want to live anymore, Granny Wang's feet weren't idle, or rather, her hands weren't idle either. She was still pulling at Wang Laizi with one hand, trying to drag him home first.
But Wang Laizi didn't want to give up what he had already gotten his hands on, so he shook off her hand and cursed, "Don't touch me! I still have to go back to pick them up!"
As he spoke, Wang Laizi ran faster than Wang Pozi. After returning home and drinking a bowl of water, he hurriedly went to call people to go up the mountain.
When the villagers saw Wang Laizi, they were relieved. Some of them, who were anxious, had already lit torches and were running towards the clouds in groups of three or five.
Some who were less certain waited until Wang Laizi came out before following him into the mountains.
Meng and Chen wiped their eyes and smiled at each other.
Meng said, "It's good that they're alright."
"Yes, I feel relieved now. Sister Meng, I'll go back first. The old man will definitely need to eat and drink when he comes back, so I need to prepare." Chen said with a sigh of relief.
According to Wang Laizi, they should have had a good harvest on this trip up the mountain, so she was relieved, at least the girl wouldn't have any complaints.
That night, it wasn't until almost 9 PM that Chen Shao and Liu Yazi all returned to the village.
Chen looked around for a long time but didn't see Old Man Lu and Jiang Qinyu. Her heart tightened, and she quickly grabbed Chen Shao and asked, "Shao, where are your Uncle Lu and Sister-in-law Lu?"
Chen Shao was taken aback for a moment, then looked at her strangely and asked, "They didn't come back today, so we need to send someone from our village to replace them. Didn't Wang Laizi tell you that?"
"No, no one told me." Chen shook her head, her brows furrowed.
She waited at home until she heard a loud commotion outside, and then she came out. During that time, no one came to her house to say anything to her!
"Oh dear, I'm so sorry, Mr. Lu. My husband just told me to inform everyone that there are still more than a dozen people in the mountains who haven't returned yet. I got flustered and forgot about your family." Granny Wang came over to apologize insincerely.
Chen's face darkened. She glanced at her and then turned and went back.
That old hag is the most cunning and wicked. I've always been at odds with her, and now that she spoke up for Meng, she's bound to hold a grudge.
Leaving aside the village's hustle and bustle for now, let's talk about Jiang Qinyu and the others who are currently by the underground river, discussing how to bring the water up.
"Village Chief, why don't we go upstairs first? It's too... too cold here..." Liu Erleng said to Village Chief Li, his lips trembling.
Because he had been in the water before, he was already a bit cold, and now, more than a hundred meters underground, he felt even more chilled to the bone.
Village Chief Li couldn't take it anymore and looked at Jiang Qinyu, asking, "Niece, what do you say?"
Jiang Qinyu had just snapped out of her reverie about the new task given to her by the system when she heard this and said, "We're all dressed too lightly, we really can't stay here any longer, let's go upstairs first."
She crossed her arms, looking a little annoyed.
There are no hot springs or anything like that underground here. The temperature is around ten degrees Celsius, definitely not exceeding fifteen degrees Celsius. For people like them who are only wearing thin summer clothes, it is indeed a bit unbearable.
"Village chief, you lead everyone up first. I'll take a few people and walk along this river to see where it leads," Meng Tianze said.
Jiang Qinyu frowned and raised her hand to stop him, "Brother Meng, we've walked quite a distance into the mountains, and we don't even know where this river flows to. If we blindly go to explore, I'm afraid there will be problems. Let's all go back first."
Before submitting the mission, she glanced at the map. All the water here came from this underground river. If this river had reached the outside world, the entire Yukang Prefecture wouldn't be suffering from such a drought.
The only explanation is that this river must be circulating underground throughout the Yunshan mountain range.
“Yes, Lao Meng, let’s go back and prepare first, and come back in a few days.” Village Chief Li patted him on the shoulder and said.
Since they had already found a water source, they weren't in a hurry anymore.
Jiang Qinyu looked thoughtfully at the direction of the underground river, a bold idea forming in her mind.
Village Chief Li led his men back the way they came, and when they emerged from the cave, everyone breathed a long sigh of relief.
"It's better outside. The sun is annoying, but it's warm!"
"You bet! I was really scared down there. If it weren't for the drought, I would have kowtowed to the sun."
"Come on, you guys, haven't you done enough cursing the sun before?"
"I'm saying you..."
A dozen or so men were making a ruckus, while Village Chief Li walked with Jiang Qinyu.
"My dear niece, what do you think of this?" After the initial excitement of finding a water source wore off, Village Chief Li frowned.
Although they have found a water source, how will they get it?
We can't keep going up and down through the hole we just smashed, can we?
Jiang Qinyu stopped and turned to face the direction of Dingshui Village. She turned to look at Village Chief Li and asked, "Uncle Village Chief, how far do you think it is from here to the village as the crow flies?"
"Huh?" Village Chief Li was a little confused. "What do you mean?"
Jiang Qinyu gestured, "From the moment we entered the mountains until now, it seems like we've traveled all day to get here, but if we were to dig a straight road underground to the village, how far would it be?"
At first, Village Chief Li didn't understand what she meant. But after he figured it out, his mouth dropped open so wide it could fit a goose egg. "My dear niece, you mean...you mean..."
What this girl said was something he wouldn't even dare to dream of! "My darlings, let's get the votes rolling! Give me some motivation!"
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